Maggie Q isn’t one to back down from a fight. After all, the martial-arts-trained actress has kicked plenty of butt on screen in action vehicles like Mission: Impossible III and the CW series Nikita. But her latest role—FBI agent Hannah Wells on ABC’s new drama Designated Survivor—may present her toughest challenge yet as she investigates the bombing of the U.S. Capitol. This week, her task will only get harder when shots are fired at the White House during a governors summit held by the newly minted President Kirkman (Kiefer Sutherland). Here’s a peek inside the case file.

From the beginning, Wells has suspected that the attack could be an inside job. Is it satisfying to see her theory finally getting traction?
You would think there’d be some vindication—but at the same time, Hannah doesn’t want to be right about this hunch. It’s been really sobering and bittersweet for her.

Your character has yet to interact with POTUS. When will that happen?
It’s gonna be a minute. [Laughs] Not five minutes, but a minute. The FBI has a hierarchy, and in her mind she’s not one of the people who can put herself in front of him. Our scenes so far have been non-dialogue, standing in the same room, and I love the tease of that. Kiefer Sutherland is one of my favorite actors—he’s like actor porn! So it’s been nice for me to psychologically build up to their stuff together.

You’ve been shooting this during the nuttiest election cycle ever. Do you feel up to your ears in politics?
It’s a subject I’m personally obsessed with, thank God! We film in Toronto, and the people here seem to have a real sense of sympathy for us. Like, I’m so sorry that this turned into such a circus. And I completely agree! I showed up on set the other day with a T-shirt that said “Kirkman 2016.”